In current marine steering systems, a flexible conduit is attached to a steering helm. This attachment is made by turning a steering wheel and rotating a flexible helical core while inserting the core into a helm spigot. The internal wheel coacting with the core is then turned until the ferrule face at the end of the conduit meets the helm spigot face. A threaded connector nut, which is moveably mounted on the conduit, is threaded onto a threaded portion of the helm spigot and torqued into place using a wrench.
A plastic locking ring or washer is typically inserted in the connector nut as an anti-vibration loosening device. This requires a high torque to fully tighten the connector nut. In some instances, the connector nut is prohibited from being tightened all the way, introducing a space between the ferrule face and the spigot face, resulting in backlash or lost motion in the steering mechanism.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,907 to Hunt, issued May 16, 1978, discloses a quick connecting type coupling for pipes. The coupling includes a female member including a plurality of resilient fingers for sliding over and mating with a male member. The male member is inserted into the female member and a locking ring is manually moved to a locked position to complete the coupling and prevent relative movement between the male and female members.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,440,425 to Pate et al issued Apr. 3, 1984, discloses a flexible conduit system, having a similar female connector as that in the Hunt U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,907. The female member of the Pate et al patent adds a plurality of circumferentially spaced shoulders to keep the outer locking ring from sliding therepast once the ring has been placed in the locked position.
The U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,974 to Fawcett issued Dec. 16, 1980, discloses a ball and socket joint for push-pull cable terminals. In the U.S. Pat. No. 4,238,974 assembly, a male member is inserted in a female member to complete the connection.